Ford is banking on the electric future

The American carmaker seems to be banking on the future of electric technology with a new $135 million investment into their hybrid and electric technology development, as part of an overall goal to speed up the production and development of new parts for future alternative fuel vehicles.

With this investment Ford will create a few dozen jobs over the following year at its newly appointed Advanced Electrification Center in Dearborn, Michigan. The Center will be adding sixty new engineers to the already thousand that is working on the vehicle electrification team since last year.

Ford is planning to double its battery-testing capabilities thanks to the introduction of some new technology in the form of highly specialized machines capable of simulating a wide range of factors from power and performance to life and thermal behavior, while also considering a varied spectrum of temperatures and operating conditions.

The new investment is meant to speed up the introduction of hybrid and electric vehicles by about a quarter and also reduce the cost of the next-gen Ford hybrid systems by thirty percent compared with the previous-generation.

Ford is already the largest producer of hybrid vehicles in the US, and this plan will help to expand its range to five hybrid, plug-ins and pure EV models by next year. This is part of the company’s aim to offer their customers more choice as well as faster access to the latest fuel-saving technologies possible. And this goal can only be achieved by continually investing in their electrified vehicle team and their facilities, so it’s a win for everyone concerned.